He Pito Mata

17 September 2021

From the Principal:

Key information for whānau ... read here.

College Notices:

Important Dates to Diary

Full details are available on the school website calendar. The following are important dates to note:

13-19 Sep: Te Wiki o te Reo Māori
20-24 Sep: Senior Derived Grade Examinations - Timetable
Thank you dinner for coaches and managers: rescheduled to 29 Sep
Fun Walk/Run: - Cancelled
End Term Three: Fri 1 Oct - Sports Day, Students to Wear House Colours
Beginning Term Four: Mon 18 Oct
Sports Photos: rescheduled to Thur 21 October
Sports Prizegiving: Thur 28 Oct
Senior Prizegiving: Rescheduled to Thur 18 Nov

Sports Photos have been rescheduled to Thursday 21 October.

We are doing these in-house due to the photographer being unable to reschedule - timings will be sent out asap.

Senior Prizegiving has been rescheduled to Thursday 18 November

UCOL classes will continue as usual during Derived Grade Examination week.

Safety of Students at Ōtaki College

Recently we encountered a near-miss accident with a parent dropping off a student in the car-park area by the tennis courts. This accident could have been extremely serious had a student been in the proximity of the motor vehicle which collided with another parked vehicle and went through the barrier fencing of the tennis courts.

Outcome: Front Gates will be closed from 8.30-9.00am and 3.00-3.30pm each day.

As a result of this accident and discussion with out BoT as well as meeting our legal requirements around safety of our students, a decision has been made to close the driveway off to the public from 8.30-9.00am and 3.00-3.30pm. This will commence on Wednesday 22nd September and you will see the large blue gates at the top of the driveway shut to stop access. While this may seem an inconvenience, this decision has been made to keep our students safe. We would encourage you to be compliant with this decision and also to adhere to road rules when dropping students off on Mill Road.

Thank you in anticipation.

Andy Fraser, Principal

p.p. Ōtaki College Board of Trustees

End of Year Arrangements for Senior Students

I am alerting you to the fact that in response to the disruption of COVID Lockdown, external exams will commence two weeks later than originally advertised by NZQA. To make the most of this opportunity to regain time in learning, senior students will remain at school until the end of Week 5 (19th November). Please note that there will be circumstances that will allow some students to be given dispensation to leave College sooner or to study from home. The criteria for this is currently being finalised and students will be alerted of this on completion.

Senior Prizegiving will now be held on Thursday 18 November and we encourage as many students and whānau to attend as possible if we are at Level 1 by then. If there are any changes to alert levels we will act accordingly and be in communication with you about our plans for this event.

Due to the uncertain nature of lockdown levels we are experiencing we have had to unfortunately cancel our Wellbeing Fun run/walk event that was scheduled for September 25. We appreciate the the community support that had been offered for this event.

U-Skills courses 2022

UCOL have recently released their U-Skills courses for 2022 and Hamish Wood and Steph Putt have met with our senior students and gone over what's available. These courses have also been included in our Year 11-13 course selection booklet which will be available on the school website in Week 10.

The courses run either one or two days a week, while the student is still enrolled at school. They are either held at UCOL in PN or at Ōtaki College in the case of Level 2 and Level 3 construction, along with the new Defence Pathways course, which will run in 2022 for the first time. This course will help students prepare for a career in the Defence Force.

Applications for these courses need to be completed asap. Application forms are available from Steph Putt, and need to be returned to her along with a birth certificate or current passport. Students will be interviewed by a staff member from UCOL during Term 4. If you have any questions about these courses please either email Steph Putt: spt@otakicollege.school.nz or phone her on 3648204 extension 719.

NCEA Changes due to COVID-19

NZQA has made some changes to NCEA for schools affected by the COVID lockdowns. For schools out of the Auckland region, the following changes have been made:

For every 5 credits that a student achieves in 2021, they will receive 1 LRC (Learning Recognition Credits).
A student can receive up to 8 LRC towards NCEA Level 1 or up to 6 LRC towards NCEA Level's 2 and 3. This effectively taking the total required down to 72 credits for NCEA Level 1 and down to 54 credits for NCEA Level's 2 and 3.

These are the only changes to date. Yet, if schools return to lockdown, there will be more changes.

Loves Me Not Healthy Relationship Programme

Our Year 13 students will be participating in the Loves Me Not programme on Tuesday September 28. We have been running this programme with our senior students for a number of years now.

Loves Me Not is a ‘whole-school approach’ to preventing abusive behaviour in relationships. It is based on a student inquiry learning process, where students take action (personal action, effective bystander action and community action) to prevent harm from relationship abuse and to focus on the features of healthy consensual relationships.

The programme is presented by the NZ Police, Kapiti Youth Support and our PE/Health teachers.

Parent Resources to help support young people with their career development and career decision making.

At this time of the year many senior students are either considering leaving school and what they are going to do next OR if they are returning to school, what subjects they are going to take next year. Parents/caregivers serve as a major influence in their children's career development and career decision making. Here are some useful resources from the CATE (Careers and Transition Education Association NZ Inc) website to help parents/caregivers to support their young people with their decisions: Parent Resources .

This resource provides information on GenZ, the changing world of work, NCEA, subject selection, understanding tertiary learning options, tips for parents on supporting their young person and resources they can access to work alongside their teen to map out their future plans.

View Upcoming Libelle Lunch Menus

Work Ready Kāpiti Employer Meet - Ōtaki College staffroom, Thursday 30 September 5.30pm - 7.30pm.

This is a speed-dating style event, with a variety of local business owners meeting with multiple students/young job seekers over the course of the evening.

Students are registered and matched to employers ahead of the event and then on the evening complete a series of meetings with their selected employers.

The meetings will be like mini-interviews, a chance for students to demonstrate their skills and abilities, whilst forging a useful connection with an employer from within their chosen industry. They can also discuss the student's CV, how they present at the interview and get top tips on becoming employed.

This is a great opportunity for students to ensure they are "work ready", or find out how they can secure future work.

Registrations will be available soon Here

Nominations are open for our 2021 Sports Blues

Sport Blues are awarded to NZ Representatives, NZ Title Holders or those that have placed top three in a NZ Competition. Please let our Sports Director, Kirsty Doyle, know of anyone who might fit this criteria - kdl@otakicollege.school.nz.

News and Events

Tikardan gains place in Mātauranga Māori scholarship programme

This scholarship will assist Tikardan in furthering her studies in Environmental Science or Engineering ... read more

Oriwa joins The Company NZ Hip Hop Team

This Wellington Hip Hop Team has had local, national and international success in recent years ... read more

Congratulations to ... Heremaia Cooper, Dayton Hakaraia and Lewis Case - selected for the HKRFU U18s.

Ōtaki Te Rāhui Kura Kapa Haka

Ōtaki Te Rāhui Kura Kapa Haka, our combined kapa haka group, competed at the Te Whakataetae Kapa Haka o Ngā Kura Tuarua ki Te Whanganui ā Tara.

The group was made of students from Ōtaki College, Te Kura ā iwi o Whakatupuranga Rua Mano and Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Te Rito.

Ōtaki Te Rāhui Kura placed 3rd, enabling them to compete at Nationals in Auckland, 2022. Awesome effort!

Whaea Maharata Nikora-Davis, Curriculum Leader, Māori

Te Poutoko Māra - Community Garden

The College Horticulture Block is undergoing a major upgrade thanks to funding from NZCT. Read about this exciting project .

Helpful Hauora Hints: Parenting

Listening and talking with our young people-tamariki- can be challenging at times! There are many life stresses that parents are dealing with alongside their parenting role. To support you as parents, we have selected 5 tips from the Skylight organisation that may be helpful.

Communication tips for Parents

· Tell them that you love them

· Be honest with them

· Keep talking to them

· Timing-Pick your moment to tackle an issue with them

· Praise and encourage your teen

The link Parenting has some more tips and also highlights articles on communication between parents and teenagers that may be helpful.

Go well!

School TV - a health, wellbeing and guidance resource for parents.

Latest Report: The Wellbeing Barometer

(all replies to the parent survey in this Report are completely confidential)

Community Notices

Come play softball this year - It's Fun, Fast and Furious.

Join us on the diamond this season. Registration is now OPEN, for the old, the young and the young at heart! We welcome all returning players, and new players to join us this season! All ages welcome, both boys and girls team!

Get in early, so we can hit the diamond! Register online at www.kapitisoftball.co.nz

Enquires to: Kyla Huff 027 244 8756 / info@kapitisoftball.co.nz

COVID-19 UPDATE LEVEL 2 DELTA

Hoop Club Kapiti's Sunday Junior Coaching Programme Starts Back This Sunday 19 September

With A Temporary Time Change

5 to 7 year olds 9.30am to 10:15am

8 to 10 year olds 10:30am to 11:15am

11 to 17 year olds 11:30am to 12:15pm

This allows a 15 minute gap where all equipment can be cleaned and the gym clear between sessions. We ask that you consider only one spectator accompany their child/children to ensure we abide by the current public gathering limit of 50 people.

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